Six rural Jackson County towns are slated to hold their municipal elections April 5, according to authorities at the Jackson County Election Board.

Olustee will be having elections to determine the winners of four Board of Trustees positions (two four year terms and two two-year unexpired terms) and a town clerk/treasurer for an unexpired two year term. Esmeralda Lopez is running for the clerk/treasurer job.

In September 2004, a very heated town council meeting was held in Olustee regarding the resignation of then-town clerk, Tonya Kelley. Board member Linda Lopez complained that she had been left out of the discussion of Kelley's job. Lopez said Kelley was asked to resign by the other board members. Kelley stated at the meeting that she was "given two options", but declined to say what those two options were.

Lopez' sister-in-law, Esmeralda Lopez, had applied for the position and said that she had been discriminated against. Kim Keller was soon appointed to take over the duties of clerk until the elections.

"I was never called in for an interview. They decided to hire someone else. I was never asked, so I'm taking this a little bit higher, you know, the discrimination act," said Esmeralda Lopez during that meeting.

Esmeralda Lopez has declined to make comments about her running this year for the open town clerk position, a position for which she is vying with Keller.

Linda Lopez has since resigned from her position on the board.

"One vote against five others when you are trying to do something that's right in your heart doesn't count," Linda Lopez said. "I care about the citizens, but I finally realized that my vote didn't count. I never could accomplish anything. I just decided to resign and I want to give 100 percent to the Lord."

Others running for open positions on the Olustee board, including the vacant position left by Lopez, are: two positions for four year terms for which Chuy R. Lopez and Brad Pryor qualified; and two positions for two year unexpired terms for which W.A. Hartwig and Cary D. Carrell qualified.

In Martha, there is one position open for the board of trustees, for which Debbie Dunn is the only one running, and there is also one position for a two year unexpired term, in which the only one running is Starla Klein.

The Headrick Board of Trustees has two positions open on the board for four year terms and a vacant position for the town clerk/treasurer, but no-one filed for any of the vacant positions. According to the Jackson County Election Board, the Headrick Board of Trustees will have to appoint people to these positions.

The Eldorado Board of Trustees has three vacant positions for four year terms, with five individuals running - H.C. Davis, J. Carl Richeson, Allen Coker, Sandy Coward and incumbent Collins Miller. It also has a vacant position for a two-year term, in which three people are running - Raymond Green, Leon Williams and Clyde Hill, Jr.

Duke has two Board of Trustees positions open for four year terms, with Alan Womack running against the incumbent Herbert Turner.

Susan Armstrong is the only candidate for Blair Board of Trustee Ward 2. Fred Armstrong is the only candidate in Blair's Ward 4.